WO2007032432A1

WO2007032432A1 - Operating dial

Info

Publication number: WO2007032432A1
Application number: PCT/JP2006/318252
Authority: WO
Inventors: Kouichi Yamanoue; Takeshi Yamane; Yoshifumi Makino
Original assignee: Visteon Global Technologies, Inc.
Priority date: 2005-09-14
Filing date: 2006-09-14
Publication date: 2007-03-22
Also published as: KR20080055912A; KR100991082B1; US20100149001A1; JPWO2007032432A1; DE112006002444T5; JP4933436B2

Abstract

An inexpensive operating dial exhibiting excellent durability and reliability and ensuring high detection accuracy of the rotational angle of the dial. The rotary operating dial comprises a printed circuit board (10) having an electric circuit, a drive electrode (13) provided on the printed circuit board (10), a plurality of detection electrodes (12) provided on the periphery of the drive electrode (13), a ring electrode (101) arranged oppositely to the drive electrode (13) through a gap and having at least one protrusion (102) protruding outward to oppose any one of the plurality of detection electrodes (12) through a gap, and a dial made of an electric insulating material and rotatable integrally with the ring electrode (101).

Description

Specification

Operation dial

Technical field

The present invention relates to an operation dial, and more particularly, to a rotary operation for electrically detecting an absolute rotational position of the operation dial, which is suitably mounted on a vehicle and used for an air conditioning operation panel or the like. On the dial.

Background art

[0002] As a conventional rotary operation dial, it has been known that a switching contact is arranged on the outer peripheral portion of the operation dial, or a drive gear and a rotary switch are arranged on the outer peripheral portion of the operation dial. (See Patent Document 1).

Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-184969

Disclosure of the invention

Problem that invention tries to solve

In the above-mentioned prior art, in the method having the switching contact portion, the contact failure may occur due to the intrusion of dust etc. in the vehicle compartment or the sliding wear of the electrical contact, so the durability and reliability by long-term use can be improved. There was a sexual concern. On the contrary, in order to improve the durability and reliability, a complicated dustproof structure is required, and the cost is increased by applying a gold plating to the electric contact.

In addition, in the system having a drive gear, a force requiring three components of a front case, a middle case and a back case for the purpose of protecting the drive gear also entails an increase in structural cost.

Furthermore, in an example in which, for example, a rotary position sensor S V01 series manufactured by Murata Mfg. Co., Ltd. is adopted as the rotary switch, the rotation detection error of this rotary position sensor is 3%, but the car is driven. It is known that a detection error of approximately 5% of the total rotation angle ratio occurs with respect to the rotation position of the operation dial because there is a rotation angle transmission error of the gear.

However, assuming that the total rotation angle of the operation dial of this rotary switch is 240 degrees, an error of 240 × 0.05 = 12 degrees will occur. On the other hand, for example, for air conditioning The required angular resolution is 7.5 degrees when the setting resolution of the temperature setting dial is 32 steps Z 240 degrees. Therefore, when this rotary switch is applied to the temperature setting dial for air conditioning, there arises a problem that the error becomes larger than the required value of the rotational angle detection accuracy.

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an operation dial which is inexpensive, excellent in durability and reliability, and high in detection accuracy of the rotation angle of the dial.

Means to solve the problem

[0009] In order to achieve the above object, the operation dial of the present invention is an operation dial that is rotated and operated, and a printed circuit board (10) having an electric circuit, and the printed circuit board ( 10) a drive electrode (13) provided on the upper surface, a plurality of detection electrodes (12) provided on the periphery of the drive electrode (13) on the printed circuit board (10), 13) A ring electrode (101, 101a) disposed opposite to the at least one of the plurality of detection electrodes (12) at least one projecting outward so as to face the other of the plurality of detection electrodes (12). A ring electrode (101, 101a) having two projections (102, 102a) and a dial of an electrically insulating material rotatable integrally with the ring electrode (101, 101a) And

Thus, in the operation dial of the present invention, the drive electrode, the detection electrode, and the ring electrode are not in contact with each other. For this reason, the dial for operation of the present invention is excellent in durability and reliability because there is no possibility of occurrence of wear or contact failure of the electrode. Furthermore, since the operation dial of the present invention does not need to be provided with a complicated dustproof structure or gear mechanism, it can have a simple configuration. For this reason, the operation dial of the present invention can be manufactured inexpensively.

Furthermore, since the operation dial of the present invention does not require a gear mechanism, there is no gear error. Instead, the rotation angle of the dial is digitally detected by the number of detection electrodes according to the setting resolution Z of the dial or the number of steps disposed on the printed circuit board on the outer periphery of the dial. Therefore, high rotational angle detection accuracy is realized.

In the present invention, preferably, the driving circuit (200) for applying a high frequency signal to the driving electrode (13) and the plurality of detection electrodes (12) are sequentially connected and connected. A switching circuit (300) for outputting a signal of the output electrode (12) and an output signal of the switching circuit (300) are processed, and the above-mentioned ring electrode is processed by a high frequency signal applied to the drive electrode (13). Signal detection means (400 for detecting a signal induced to the detection electrode (12) facing the protrusion (102, 102a) of (101, 101a) and outputting a detection signal according to the dial operation position. ) And.

When a high frequency signal is applied to the drive electrode, the high frequency signal is induced to the ring electrode facing the drive electrode. Furthermore, among the plurality of detection electrodes, a high frequency signal is selectively induced also to the detection electrode facing the protrusion of the ring electrode. As a result, among the signals from the plurality of detection electrodes, the signal level from the detection electrode facing the protrusion becomes maximum. Then, since the projection of the ring electrode rotates integrally with the dial, the detection electrode for which the maximum signal level is detected is determined according to the rotational operation position of the dial. Therefore, the operating position of the operation dial is detected by specifying the detection electrode at which the maximum signal level is detected.

In the present invention, preferably, the drive electrode (13) has an annular pattern formed coaxially with the dial, and the ring electrode (101, 101a) is formed of the drive electrode (1). It is arranged to overlap with the annular pattern of 3).

As described above, when the drive electrode has an annular pattern, a high frequency is induced to the ring electrode via the drive electrode regardless of the rotation angle of the dial.

In the present invention, preferably, the drive circuit (200) is printed on the drive electrode (13) from a rectangular wave signal oscillating circuit and a rectangular wave signal oscillated from the rectangular wave signal oscillating circuit. And an LC resonance circuit for extracting the frequency component of the high frequency signal.

Thereby, a high frequency signal of a desired frequency can be applied to the drive electrode.

By the way, when the parts of the dial and the parts of the ring electrode are separately formed, the parts are manually fitted to each other, and the operation dial is assembled. In that case, an assembly jig is required to assemble the operation dial. In addition, since there is a possibility that incorrect assembly of the partially fitted state may occur, it is also necessary to inspect the fitted state. The occurrence of mis-assembly and the need for inspection of the condition of fitting lead to an increase in cost.

Thus, in the present invention, preferably, the dial has a sleeve (100a), and The sleeve (100a) has a flange (1000) whose lower surface is opposed to the drive electrode, and the flange (1000) has at least one protrusion (1001) protruding outward, and the ring The electrode (101a) is printed on the lower surface of the flange (1000), and the projection (102a) of the ring electrode (101a) is printed on the lower surface (1002) of the projection (1001) of the flange (1000). It is printed.

As a result, although two parts are required if the dial part and the ring electrode part are separately formed, the same function can be realized at substantially one point by printing the ring electrode. can do. As a result, cost can be reduced by reducing the number of parts. Furthermore, there is no need to fit and assemble the parts of the dial and the parts of the ring electrode. For this reason, there is no risk of erroneous assembly, and there is no need to check the presence or absence of erroneous assembly. Also, it is not necessary to separately manufacture the ring electrode parts. For this reason, the mold manufacturing cost of the parts of the ring electrode is also unnecessary.

Effect of the invention

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an operation dial that is inexpensive, excellent in durability and reliability, and high in detection accuracy of the rotation angle of the dial.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the dial for operation of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First, the basic structure of the operation dial according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 shows the basic structure of the operation dial of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the operation dial of the present embodiment is an operation dial that is rotated and operated, and has a printed circuit board 10 having an electric circuit, and the printed circuit board 10. A drive electrode 13 provided, a plurality of detection electrodes 12 provided around the drive electrode 13 on the printed circuit board 10, and a ring electrode opposed to the drive electrode 13 with a gap therebetween A ring electrode 101 having at least one protrusion 102 projecting outward so as to face the gap 101 with any one of the plurality of detection electrodes 12 integrally with the ring electrode 101; And a dial of rotatable electrically insulating material.

The driving electrode 13 has an annular pattern formed coaxially with the dial, and the ring electrode (1 01, 101a) are arranged to overlap with the annular pattern of the drive electrode (13). The dial also has a sleeve 100 made of resin.

[0021] The sleeve 100 has a cylindrical shape integrally configured with the operation dial. Sleeve 1

The 00 is engaged with the dial barrel 104 shown in FIG. 2 and rotatably mounted on the surface of the printed circuit board 10. Further, on the inner surface of the sleeve 100, a serration 103 is provided. Sleeves 1 by a panel (not shown) press-contacted with the serration 103

A click force corresponding to the rotational position of 00 is generated.

The detection electrodes 12 are formed on the surface of the printed circuit board 10 by printed wiring patterns disposed equiangularly apart from each other on the circumference coaxial with the sleeve 100. The drive electrode 13 is formed on the inner peripheral portion of the detection electrode 12 on the printed circuit board 10 by an annular pattern formed coaxially with the dial.

As shown in FIG. 2, the ring electrode 101 is fitted to the lower surface of the flange of the sleeve 100 and provided so as to overlap with the annular pattern of the drive electrode 13. The ring electrode 101 has a protrusion 102 protruding outward from the ring electrode 101. The protrusions 10 are disposed to be able to face each of the detection electrodes 12. The protrusions 102 also have approximately the same area and shape as the area and shape of the individual sensing electrodes 12.

Further, the operation dial is connected to the drive circuit 200 for applying a high frequency signal to the drive electrode 13 and the plurality of detection electrodes 12 sequentially, and the signals from the detection electrodes 12 are A switching circuit 300 for outputting and an output signal from the switching circuit 300 are processed, and a high frequency signal applied to the drive electrode 13 induces the detection electrode 12 facing the projecting portion 102 of the ring electrode 101. And signal detection means 400 for detecting a signal and thereby outputting a detection signal corresponding to the dial operation position.

Drive electrode 13 is connected to drive circuit means 200 for supplying a high frequency signal of a predetermined frequency formed on printed circuit board 10. Each detection electrode 12 is electrically connected to one detection electrode selected from the plurality of detection electrodes 12 via the switching circuit means 300 formed on the printed circuit board 10, and a signal detection means It is also connected with 400.

The gap D1 between the front surface of the printed circuit board 10 and the back surface of the ring electrode 101 is desirably about 0.2 mm. The projections 102 of the ring electrode 101 accompany the rotation of the sleeve 100. The detection electrode 12 is configured to face one of the two!

An electrostatic capacitance Ca is formed between the detection electrode 12 and the protrusion 102 configured as described above. In addition, a capacitance Cb is formed between the ring electrode 101 and the drive electrode 13.

Next, FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional structure of the operation dial of the present embodiment.

In FIG. 2, the patterns of the detection electrodes 12 and the drive electrodes 13 on the printed circuit board 10 are not shown. As shown in FIG. 2, on the upper surface of the printed circuit board 10, a light guide 107 made of a transparent resin material is fixed. In the inner cylindrical portion of the light guide 107, a cylindrical resin button 106 which can push the upward force is inserted.

A rotatable dial barrel portion 104 is fitted to the outer peripheral portion of the light guide 107. The sleeve 100 and the dial barrel 104 are pinched by the bent portion of the ring electrode 101 made of a metal plate, with the sleeve 100 coupled to the lower portion of the dial barrel 104.

A pointer 105 visually indicates the operation position of the dial. A switch member 108 is configured on the surface of the printed circuit board 10 such that the electrical contacts close in conjunction when the button 106 is pressed. Also, the LED 109 is mounted on the surface of the printed circuit board 10 by soldering in order to transmit the light guide 107 and illuminate the surface of the button 106 at night.

Next, FIG. 3 shows an example of the structure of an air conditioning control module equipped with the operation dial of the present invention.

Also in FIG. 3, the patterns of the detection electrodes 12 and the drive electrodes 13 on the printed circuit board 10 are not shown. As shown in FIG. 3, in this air conditioning control module, it is coaxially mounted on the surface of the panel 14, the button 106, the light guide 107, the sleeve 100, and the ring electrode 101 force printed circuit board 10. There is. This air conditioning control module is configured such that the cover 111 is attached from the back of the case 110 after the printed circuit board 10 is inserted into the bottom side force of the case 110 and fixed to the case.

Hereinafter, the operation of the operation dial of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

The drive circuit 200 has a rectangular wave signal oscillation circuit, and an LC resonance circuit that extracts a frequency component of a high frequency signal applied to the drive electrode (13) from the rectangular wave signal oscillated from the rectangular wave signal oscillation circuit.

The driving circuit means 200 oscillated from a rectangular wave signal oscillating circuit and a rectangular wave signal oscillating circuit. The L—C resonant circuit is configured to extract the frequency component of the high frequency signal applied to the drive electrode 13 from the rectangular wave signal.

The square wave signal oscillation circuit shown in FIG. 4 can be formed by a known RC oscillation circuit. The rectangular wave signal oscillation circuit is set to generate, for example, a 300 KHz rectangular wave signal. Further, the L-C resonant circuit is composed of a coil 15 and a capacitor 16. The L-C resonant circuit also filters the output of the square wave signal oscillator circuit to extract only the increase in voltage amplitude and the desired frequency, thereby providing a sinusoidal signal as shown by S 1 in FIG. The high frequency signal is supplied to the drive electrode 13 provided on the printed circuit board 10.

The applied resonant circuit causes the voltage applied to the drive electrode 13 to rise, and the harmonic component contained in the output signal of the drive circuit means 200 is suppressed. As a result, the generation of jamming waves radiated from the drive electrode 13 to the outside is suppressed.

As shown in FIG. 1, as described above, the drive electrode 13 and the annular portion of the ring electrode 101 face each other to form a capacitance Cb. Furthermore, the protrusion 102 of the ring electrode 101 and the detection electrode 12 facing the protrusion 102 form a capacitance Ca.

Therefore, the high-frequency signal S 1 output from the drive circuit means 200 is a detection electrode facing the protrusion 102 of the ring electrode 101 among the plurality of detection electrodes 12 via the capacitances Ca and Cb. Detection electrode) 12 is induced. The induction signal to the opposite detection electrode 12 of the high frequency signal S1 is sequentially selected by the switching circuit means 300 which also has a known analog switching force, as shown in FIG. 4, and configured to perform amplification and detection. Detection means 400 is input.

The switching signal input terminal 18 of the switching circuit means 300 and the output terminal 19 of the signal detection means 400 are connected to a microprocessor (not shown) to perform desired control.

Here, the facing detection electrode 12 is selectively determined by the rotational position of the dial barrel 104. As an example, when the protrusion 102 faces the detection electrode 12c (see FIG. 4), the output of the detection circuit means is output during the period when the switching signal S2 of the switching circuit means is indicated by “3” in FIG. Signal S3 shows the maximum value. As described above, when the output of the signal detection means 400 reaches the maximum level, the operation position of the dial body 104 is detected by specifying the detection electrode to which the switching circuit means 300 is connected. Ru.

As described above, the operation dial of the present invention utilizes the capacitance formed between the pattern on the printed circuit board and the ring electrode rotating with a predetermined gap. The inductive level force of the high frequency signal is configured to detect the operating position of the dial. Therefore, the operation dial of the present invention is excellent in durability because there is no wear of the electrode due to the contact. Also, the operation dial of the present invention does not have a detection angle error due to the combination of the drive gear and the rotary position sensor in the prior art. According to the operation dial of the present invention, the rotational angle can be detected digitally by arranging the detection electrodes in a number corresponding to the setting resolution, so that the rotational operation position of the operation dial can be detected with high accuracy. it can.

Further, unlike the prior art having the drive gear, the operation dial of the present invention does not need to have a three-layer structure of the front case, the middle case, and the back case. Since it can be configured by points, low cost is possible.

In addition, the control dial of the present invention has excellent resistance to high frequency noises induced by external noise. Generally, the frequency of high frequency noise applied to on-board equipment on a vehicle is several tens kHz to several hundreds MHz. In consideration of the wavelength of these high frequency noises, the part of the operation dial that receives the induction of external noise is the ring electrode which is the maximum line length.

Meanwhile, the operation dial of the present invention detects the maximum value among the signal levels from the plurality of detection electrodes, and the protrusion of the ring electrode selectively transmits the signal to the detection electrode. Is applied. For this reason, even if excessive high frequency noise is applied to the ring electrode, the signal from the selected detection electrode is the sum of the normal high frequency signal and the noise, and as a result, the selected detection electrode force The signal level of the one signal becomes higher. Therefore, when noise is applied, the difference between the maximum signal level of the signals from each detection electrode and the signal level of the remaining detection electrode force signal becomes larger.

As described above, the gap D1 between the ring electrode 101 and the printed circuit board 10 is about 0.2 mm. It needs to be close. However, condensation may occur in the gap D1 due to temperature change or humidity of the vehicle. The location of moisture attachment due to condensation is between the drive electrode 13 and the ring electrode 101 or between the protrusion 102 of the ring electrode 101 and the detection electrode 12.

When moisture adheres to these gaps, the values of the capacitances Ca and Cb increase several dozen times. As a result, the induction level of the high frequency signal at the detection electrode 12 is doubled. For this reason, due to the adhesion of water, as in the case of the above-mentioned external noise, the difference between the maximum signal level of each detection electrode strength signal and the signal level of the remaining detection electrode strength signals becomes larger. . Therefore, even if moisture adheres due to condensation, no problem occurs in practical use.

Although the output signals of the plurality of detection electrodes 12 are input to the signal detection means 400 via the switching circuit means 300 in the present embodiment, the total number of the plurality of detection electrodes is small!

The detection electrode may be directly connected to a plurality of signal detection means, and the output of the signal detection means may be compared by a microphone processor or the like to realize the same function. That is, the microprocessor may double as switching circuit means and signal processing means.

Next, another embodiment of the dial for operation of the present invention will be described.

In the present embodiment, the configuration other than the sleeve 100 and the ring electrode 101 is the same as that of the above-described embodiment, so the detailed description of the same portions will be omitted.

FIG. 6 (a) is a side view of the sleeve of the operation dial of the present embodiment. Figure 6 (b) is a bottom view. As shown in FIG. 6 (a), the sleeve 100a of this embodiment has a flange 1

It has 000. The flange 1000 has a projection 1002 whose lower surface 1001 faces the drive electrode 13 and which protrudes toward the periphery of the sleeve 100a.

In FIG. 6A, the ring-shaped electrode 101a attached to the lower surface of the flange 1000 is not shown.

As shown in FIG. 6 (b), a ring-shaped pattern of the ring electrode 1 Ola is printed on the lower surface 1002 of the flange 1000 of the sleeve 100a. On the lower surface of the projecting portion 1001 of the flange 1000, a pattern of the projecting portion 102a of the ring electrode 101a is formed by printing. The ring electrodes 10 la and 102 a are attached to the flange by hot stamping (foil stamping) and printed. The force of the sleeve 100 on which the ring electrode is attached by printing In the above embodiment, the same function as that of the assembly of the sleeve 100 and the ring electrode 101 is substantially realized. Therefore, the cost is reduced by the small number of parts. Also, since there is no risk of misassembly, product reliability is improved.

The method of forming the ring electrode pattern on the sleeve is not limited to the hot stamping method, and for example, a hydraulic transfer method or an insert forming method of a metal thin film may be used.

Industrial applicability

As described above, the operation dial of the present invention can detect the rotational position of the dial without contact and accurately, and has high reliability with respect to external noise, condensation, etc. Since the structure can be provided, it is suitable for use as a dial for air conditioning control devices for automobiles, etc., and can also be used as an operation dial for general electric products.

Brief description of the drawings

FIG. 1 is a view showing the basic structure of an operation dial according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of an operation dial according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing the structure of an air conditioning control module using the operation dial of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an electric circuit diagram of an operation dial according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an electric signal waveform for explaining the operation of the operation dial according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 (a) is a side view of a sleeve of an operation dial according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 (b) is a bottom view thereof.

Explanation of sign

10 printed circuit boards

12 detection electrodes

13 Drive electrode

15 coils

16 capacitors

12a to 12d detection electrodes 18 switching signal input terminal 19 detection signal output terminal

100,, 100a sleeves

101, 101a Ring electrode

102, 102a protrusion

103 Sessions

104 dial body

105 pointer

106 button

107 light guide

108 switches

109 LED

110 cases

111 Kano Kuichi

200 drive circuit means

300 switching circuit means

400 Signal Detection Means

1000 flange

1001 protrusion

1002 bottom

Ca, Cb capacitance

SI drive circuit means output signal

S2 switching signal

S3 signal detection means output signal

Claims

The scope of the claims

[1] It is an operation dial operated by rotating it,

A printed circuit board (10) having an electrical circuit;

A drive electrode (13) provided on the printed circuit board (10);

A plurality of detection electrodes (12) provided around the drive electrode (13) on the printed circuit board (10);

A ring electrode (101, 101a) disposed opposite to the drive electrode (13) with a gap between the plurality of detection electrodes (12) and facing outward with a gap therebetween. A ring electrode (101, 101a) having at least one protruding portion (102, 102a) protruding in the hole, and a dial of an electrically insulating material rotatable integrally with the ring electrode (101, 101a);

An operation dial characterized in that it comprises.

[2] a drive circuit (200) for applying a high frequency signal to the drive electrode (13);

A switching circuit (300) sequentially connected to each of the plurality of detection electrodes (12) and outputting a signal from the connected detection electrode (12);

The output signal from the switching circuit (300) is processed to detect that the high frequency signal applied to the drive electrode (13) faces the protrusion (102, 102a) of the ring electrode (101, 101a). Signal detection means (400) for detecting a signal induced to the electrode (12) and thereby outputting a detection signal according to the dial operation position;

The operation dial according to claim 1, comprising:

[3] The drive electrode (13) has an annular pattern formed coaxially with the dial, and the ring electrodes (101, 101a) overlap the annular pattern of the drive electrode (13). Is arranged as

The operation dial according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that:

[4] The drive circuit (200) is a rectangular wave signal oscillation circuit,

An LC resonance circuit for extracting a frequency component of a high frequency signal to be printed on the drive electrode (13) from the oscillated rectangular wave signal from the rectangular wave signal oscillating circuit power;

The dial for operation according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The dial has a sleeve (100a),

The sleeve (100a) has a flange (1000) whose lower surface faces the drive electrode, the flange (1000) has at least one protrusion (1001) protruding outward, and the ring electrode (101a) is printed on the lower surface of the flange (1000),

The protrusion (102a) of the ring electrode (101a) is printed on the lower surface (1002) of the protrusion (1001) of the flange (1000)

The operation dial according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: